So .. feeling a tiny bit behind the times. That said, let’s cover what I found to be cool in my WP8 / Nokia experience:

LOVE the text-to-voice interface .. texts are read to me and I can respond in voice.

LOVE the Metro Tiles. Wonderful to be able to place the applications I use the most within easy reach for one-handed operation.

LOVE the ability to use Lync (meeting and collaboration software) while holding meetings on the Microsoft Corporate Network .. that was reason alone for me to switch.

32GB RAM .. wahoo!

Some bits I found to be not-so-hot:

Metro tiles: not happy they are not more customizable. I have multiple email accounts, and there is only one icon (that I found) .. which is which?

Text-to-voice: there doesn’t appear to be reliable ‘learning’ in the device. It doesn’t recognize / remember various bits of slang that I use.

Text-to-voice: the TTV interface simply ‘gives up’ if I’m in a noisy environment, even on an earbud.

The Bluetooth stack is oddly unreliable .. multiple earbuds will simply ‘forget’ they are connected, which forces me to the handset to complete a call. When the earbud fails, it must be power-cycled to reconnect. Further, it doesn’t accept the first attempt to PC the device (this makes me think the earbud internal system needs a reboot after connecting with WP8).

The lack of applications. I cannot use Schwab, Alaska Airlines, Chase, BECU and so on (YMMV).

The lack of functionality in WP8 applications: missing hardware components (barcode scanner, audio) in apps that are available.

The lack of Google Maps. In my experience, Bing Maps and Nokia “Here” are very poor substitutes.

IMHO: the WP8 platform still has a way to go. Maybe some of these things are resolved in the 1020 .. let’s dig about and see what we find.

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About Michael CoatesI am a pragmatic evangelist. The products, services and solutions I write about fulfill real-world expectations and use cases. I stay up-to-date on real products I use and review, and share my thoughts here.
I apply the same lens when designing an architecture, product or when writing papers. I am always looking for ways that technology can create or enhance a business opportunity .. not just technology for technology's sake.
My CV says: Seasoned technology executive, leveraging years of experience with enterprise and integration architectural patterns, executed with healthy doses of business acumen and pragmatism. That's me.
My web site says: Technology innovations provide a myriad of opportunities for businesses. That said, having the "latest and greatest" for its own sake isn't always a recipe for success.
Business successes gained through exploiting innovation relies on analysis of how the new features will enhance your business followed by effective implementation.
Goals vary far and wide: streamlining operations, improving customer experience, extending brand, and many more. In all cases, you must identify and collect the metrics you can apply to measure your success.
Analysis must be holistic and balanced: business and operational needs must be considered when capitalizing on a new technology asset or opportunity.

One Response to Windows Phone 8 – Nokia Lumia 920

It takes some getting used to. I was a BB, and Android user for years. I was disappointed with my first Windows 7.5 phone, but then I ordered the Lumia 920, after having it for almost a year now, I love it. The emails you can customize a little bit, what I do, is sort my tiles for my various email accounts, I keep my yahoo accounts in a certain place, gmail accounts in another, etc…….and I make them large or small and I put them say around my ESPN Hub app for my outlook accounts. Just get creative, and the different apps like the Nokia apps are great.

Give Nokia Maps a chance. It actually “learns” your routes you take and improves over time. When you are used to a certain system, the quirks of another system can be bothersome. its not the perfect system, but
Check out these apps

Here Drive,
Here Maps,

Free Pandora

Weave,

Chronos Calendar is good
Creative Studio
Discovery Channel,
Fresh Paint,
Here City Lens helps me all the time
Here Transit comes in handy,

Just to name a few that I have personally tried. I don't work for Microsoft or Nokia, but I have used phones since T-Mobile used to be called VoiceStream, and Airtouch had high phone bills. And my Lumia 920 works great on my $55/month Unlimited Plan